Transformation Towards Distance Learning

When a trainer is asked to change or transform a face-to-face formatted course into a blended learning course, a course that gives trainees and trainers the opportunity to interact with each other and learn the material in both a face-to-face and an online environment,  the person in charge of completing the transformation really needs to keep a number of things in mind.

Creating a blended learning course, gives the instructor the opportunity to use a plethora of activities to help move students toward the goals of the course.  First of all, students learn a lot through discussion.  Not only does discussion give students a chance to learn from the knowledge of other students, but many people believe that students learn best when they are able to share their knowledge with others.  But some people do not have the ability to take part in face to face discussions.  These discussions are fast, people are not allowed time to think of their replies, some people get nervous when asked to speak in public, and others are not confident with their comments and do not want to look stupid in front of others.  The online discussion forum is perfect for a situation like this.  These forums allow people to research their thoughts, take time a make a thoughtful reply,  allow their voice to be heard if they are not able to speak in public.  “In many cases, students will read all of the messages posted in a discussion forum to determine which ones they’ll respond to, with the result being a discussion in which everyone gets to talk and everyone listens.” (Simonson)

When preparing to transform a course into blended learning course, the instructor should follow many of the same strategies that they would when creating any course.  The instructor needs to be organized and create a syllabus that the students can follow throughout the course. “Instructors provide enough information within the syllabus that students are able to understand the structure of the course, expectations and assignments, and the assessment process. (Simonson)   By providing this information before hand, the students have a better understanding of what to expect in a blended learning environment.

In a blended learning environment, the instructor is asked to create a learning environment where students have a possibility to actively participate in their learning, while feeling safe to share their thoughts and ideas. “Learners who are engaged in learning are actively participating in their own understanding of the content.” (Simonson)

In order keep students participating in class, the instructor needs not only to come up with creative discussions, but need to show their following of the discussion by taking part in the discussion.  “In order to keep discussion on track instructor should participate once in every four or five student postings, as students take more responsibility for their own learning, instructors posts can drop to once for each 10 to 12.” (Simonson)

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.